Rally – My Life at Speedhttp://mylifeatspeed.com
The lifestyle associated with going fast is one filled with high energy characters, risk takers, and lots of great stories.Thu, 07 Sep 2017 17:20:21 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.2Dakar Drama 2017: Highs & Lows In The Bike Categoryhttp://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-drama-2017-highs-lows-in-the-bike-category/
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 20:35:56 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52985The dust of Dakar is settled, so why not open up some old wounds? It’s actually best to start out by saying that “Fuelgate” is not the biggest story of Dakar. The thing that makes it so interesting is it being the least talked about story. Though to be perfectly honest, it has also been […]

It’s actually best to start out by saying that “Fuelgate” is not the biggest story of Dakar. The thing that makes it so interesting is it being the least talked about story. Though to be perfectly honest, it has also been talked to death… just not in the wider media. Within the buzzing control rooms of Dakar race direction, and within many a European newsroom, there was much to be said about Honda’s inexplicable mistake. The press did make mention of it… but then it faded.

When it happened I was left dumbstruck, and I am still surprised there wasn’t a missing persons report filed somewhere between Buenos Aires and Japan. Heads will roll within Honda management no doubt. The rulebook is cut and dry: you cannot leave the race course in a neutralization zone. The factory Honda’s did, and they were penalized 1-hour each for the infraction. The only thing that saved them disqualification was they were seen by dozens of other teams, refueling at a local petrol station. It couldn’t have been deliberate or they would not have done this in plain sight. The 1-hour penalty was actually considered lenient by some.

If you are dying to know, a neutralization zone is basically a part of the race course where you stop racing. It’s like when you are beating up your little brother, but then your mom looks over so you pretend you are hugging. There is a speed limit and you need to behave like a road user in most cases, usually because you are going through a town or an environmentally sensitive area. In this case it was a town, and as I already said the HRC riders peeled off to refuel.

You can either decide they were running a little low on fuel due to a miscalculation (you only refuel in the refueling areas, they are marked on your road book), or you can decide the team boss was a cunning devil and sent his riders out several pounds light of fuel to give them an easier ride. If you search the enthusiast forums, your belief it tends to center with whether you like red or orange more, not which story has more merit.

I can tell you this much: Honda isn’t likely to miscalculate fuel consumption for its factory team. It also wasn’t one of their riders who received the penalty. Joan Barreda, Paulo Goncalves, Michael Metge and Ricky Brabec all took an hour penalty straight on the chin. Pow.

Maybe they couldn’t store enough fuel to make it? An interesting theory if not for the dozens of privateer Honda’s trundling past as the factory bikes refueled. Combine that with the existence of portable fuel bladders and, at this point, too many years of math and design technology, and you have a story for the ages. “Remember that one Dakar when Honda totally blew it by…”

Suffice to say, Honda’s choice to protest the penalty nearly a week later was considered poor taste by many. Then again, KTM’s protest of the 1-hour penalty was considered poor taste by many as well (they wanted 3-hours). But as I already said, Honda could have been disqualified for leaving the course in a neutralization zone. That is how easy it is to follow the rule: they don’t expect people will break it. Honda cited a 2016 incident with “Mr. Dakar” himself Stephane Peterhensal, who was investigated for refueling in a neutralization zone in his Peugeot but cleared of any wrongdoing. It didn’t fly. Honda’s penalty stood.

KTM’s Sam Sunderland took an airplane back to Dubai with his 1st place Dakar trophy, and Honda had to fit a load of sour grapes in with their CRF450’s. The real shame of the story though isn’t Honda of course, they have a management team who finally had winning riders and a reliable bike, yet they couldn’t create a simple race strategy. The shame is that Joan Barreda and Paulo Goncalvesboth ran times within one hour of Sunderland’s winning time of 32h 06m 22s. Pulling that off even after being given the demoralizing penalty early on shows how determined they were and how well the bike was working.

But the drama will certainly get people tuning in next year to see if Honda can put everything together. It’s not like KTM is short on speed or talent; there is no reason to believe Honda will simply win next year without a penalty. They just seem to have an acute case of “blowing it.” This, despite changing their team management. Interestingly, their 2016 team manager, Wolfgang Fischer, managed the maiden effort for Hero Motorcycles, who basically used the Speedbrain Husqvarna, with updates. That team managed to land rider Joaquim Rodrigues in 12th overall.

If you aren’t familiar, Hero Motorcycles is an Indian manufacturer mainly known for frumpy mopeds that keep the country in motion. German company Speedbrain is probably not familiar either, yet their efforts should be. They are behind some high performance offerings for BMW’s and actually were the Husqvarna rally team for a few years, winning several Dakar stages in 2013.

They managed the Honda Dakar team as well, as I mentioned, and now they run Hero colors, and run they did. 12th overall and, although it may not technically be Speedbrain’s debut at Dakar, when partnering with a new company from another continent, there is definitely some adjustment. It is certainly better than the results of Hero’s partnership with Erik Buell, which bankrupted his company after Hero reneged on a promised infusion of capital.

From China With Love

The hat tip certainly went to Hero, and at the other end of the spectrum the jeers went to Zongshen. The Chinese brand gets kicked whether they are up or down, mainly because of the stigma associated with Chinese products. They entered five machines in a seriously brave attempt at the Dakar, with a confusing and basically non-existent marketing campaign. We were left to guess at what was some sort of 450cc bike that wasn’t a copy of a Yamaha (as previous machines were panned for being), and unknown riders and management would take them to a finish. Or to be accurate, unknown to people outside of China. Rider Willy Jobard was the only name I had heard of, and only vaguely.

The result, from a PR stand point, was a disaster. The bikes on the starting line looked different than the ones in the teaser reel, and each other, hinting at ongoing development (or hail Mary problem solving). Personally I took this as a good sign. This is called “seat-of-the-pants testing” in America and once upon a time we all thought it was cool. You showed up with what you had and you ran it until it blew up, then you made the blown up parts better. That’s actually how we got these bland and lifeless road cars. Race teams broke everything so many times, now engineers can make a flavorless wonder. Damn.

Wasn’t I talking about Zongshen? Right then. Four of the five machines failed to make it through Stage 02, the first actual stage. Two seemed to be from navigation errors, but the others were possibly failures. Rumors swirled about crashes and navigation errors and you can take your pick. Zongshen actually replied to my inquiry and the word I got I will share in a moment.

The only survivor from Stage 02 was Thierry Bethys of France, who appeared to be a privateer until I found his Facebook page and stumbled through the only updates I could find. He was left off some of the official press, and his own press was in French, meaning you had to infer he was on the team because he was on one of the bikes. Hey, if you have a Zongshen at Dakar, you outta be welcome to hang out under the factory tent regardless. In reality I believe he was left out of the cryptic email response I received from Zongshen because he was not running their experimental RX3 engine (the entire reason for their pursuit of Dakar glory). I could not confirm this by press time.

Sadly, on Stage 04 Thierry’s bike suffered problems siphoning fuel between its two tanks, causing a loss of power. Thierry made repairs, but near the end of the stage he crashed, rupturing one of the fuel tanks. Splashing gasoline onto a hot engine is no good. Thierry was okay, but Zongshen’s maiden Dakar was now literally up in smoke.

Now, as I mentioned, I got a bona fide reply from “Sean” at Zongshen. The translation makes it exciting to analyze– like I’m part of a spy novel or something– but there is some solid information. First, Zongshen are some bona fide John Wayne style people. They built this engine and were definitely not finished testing it, but took it to Dakar to let ‘er rip anyways. They plopped Jen Hsien Chi in one of the saddles. A well known singer and TV star in China, Chi suffered three falls during Stage 02. He came together with an ATV, then got stuck in the giant mud hole that swallowed half the trucks as well as several bikes, and then found an unforgiving enough object in the form of a tree. A helicopter ride later showed no serious damage, but the bike, and Chi’s Dakar, were done.

Willy Jobard fared better but met the same fate. The Frenchman broke his foot in a crash and was out of the race in Stage 02 as well. Now we are left with Zhao Hongyi and Zhang Min. The pair are experienced racers within China, but this was their first time racing abroad. Min ran into charging system troubles on the bike during the entirety of Stage 01 and 02, according to Zongshen’s marketing man “Sean.” Hongyi stopped to help and, with both of them losing a lot of time, fell victim to pressure of making up time. It wasn’t a crash that took him out, but a failure in the fuel system.

I seem to be in the tiny camp of people not laughing at the effort. To show up and fail that spectacularly is impressive. I hope they come back. If it were an American team stuck with limited access to resources and information, showing up and having at it by the seat of their pants, we’d be raising a can of piss-warm beer and cheering them on. To put that much at stake on an international stage, and do so much of it in-house, deserves credit. I can’t help but admire their moxie.

And to cap it off, there was nothing but pragmatism in the tone of the email I received. The biggest disappointment overall was that they have to find another way to test the new engine, because they didn’t get enough race time at Dakar. When asked if they would return, the answer was equally pragmatic. “After the 2017 Dakar, we know we still have a lot of experience to catch up with, and we are not sure yet whether we are ready for the 2018 Dakar. It is [an] important thing for us that matters not only [for] the whole team but also [for] the engines. All we understand is that it is a definitely a complicated task to finish a Dakar [Rally] Race.”

Indeed.

Hero Motorcycles bought a race team and a race bike. While the effort is commendable and earned a lot of press, Zongshen’s failure will yield far more information in how to managed a rally team, build a rally bike, and market an international race than Hero’s approach. The power of failure should not be underestimated.

And There You Have It

Ten other stories come to mind of course, but there is simply no space. I have already filled up volumes about Lyndon Poskitt’s fantastic adventure to second place in the Malle Moto class and Toomas Triisa’s cyborg-like win in the class. Lyndon actually made the Dakar a stop off in his round and round the world sojourn, Races To Places. He has been continent hopping for three years now, hitting up rallies large and small on his own bike, Basil. KTM and Motorex helped him out for Dakar though with the 2017 model he used.

Dakar also brought the story of Anastasiya Nifontova, who turned out to be near-impossible to track beyond transponder times. The young Russian is a well known name due to the African Eco-Race, an event that tried to take the place of Dakar when it left the African continent for South America. Drawing privateer entries and being a purist’s dream, Anastasiya was a front runner there.

In the Dakar she struggled mightily with the heat as well as navigation. Several times she appeared to miss the cut off and be stuck on course well into the night. I thought she would be disqualified, only to wake up the next morning and see her name at checkpoint 1. Hurray! She may have stumbled with running dead last much of the rally, but at one point the entire field made a navigation error.

The early riders mistook a mud hole for a fork despite the roadbook saying the split was further ahead. Despite seeing 100 tire tracks heading off to the side, Anastasiya trusted her navigation skill, picking up dozens of positions in the process. In the end she finished 75th overall, her infectious smile being hard to miss during celebrations.

The stories just keep coming. but if you’ve read this far you are among an extremely small percentage of people left on the internet. Because with the sheer size of Dakar as an event, this is just a look at some of the unique stories to pop up this year, and it only covers the bike class. The story of just the top riders alone requires more space than this, so it is best to give the brain a rest and let the highlight reel take us through the essence of Dakar 2017: Bike category.

]]>Best of Dakar 2017: TRUCKS!!!http://mylifeatspeed.com/best-of-dakar-2017-trucks/
Tue, 17 Jan 2017 01:06:59 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52980TRUCKS!!! The words “epic” and “mammoth” cannot be overused when describing the truck category in the Dakar Rally. This year’s favorite, Gerard De Rooy settled for third in his Iveco, suffering big setbacks in two stages and struggling to make up the time. It left the door open for a one-two finish for a jubilant […]

TRUCKS!!!

The words “epic” and “mammoth” cannot be overused when describing the truck category in the Dakar Rally. This year’s favorite, Gerard De Rooy settled for third in his Iveco, suffering big setbacks in two stages and struggling to make up the time. It left the door open for a one-two finish for a jubilant Kamaz team, with Eduard Nikolaev taking the win and Dimitry Sotnikov taking second.

Watch the strange combination of elegance, speed, and brute force as these 10,000 pound machines work their way through an endless panorama… or sometimes fail to.

]]>Dakar 2017: Bikes Stage 10http://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-2017-bikes-stage-10/
Sun, 15 Jan 2017 18:23:19 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52946Bike Category The bikes had a serious shake up as they came out of the mountains and hit the final dunes in the 2017 Dakar Rally. All competitors had just spent days struggling with rain, extreme cold, and the thin air of the mountains. While Stage 10 began with the cold and altitude, they quickly […]

The bikes had a serious shake up as they came out of the mountains and hit the final dunes in the 2017 Dakar Rally. All competitors had just spent days struggling with rain, extreme cold, and the thin air of the mountains. While Stage 10 began with the cold and altitude, they quickly bashed their way down and into exactly what you should expect if you know geography: extreme heat. After all, this is January south of the equator. Temps were exceeding 120°F (50°C) and, while these are obviously brutal conditions, they are doubly so after days of being bundled up and wearing rain gear. But before the heat could wreak havoc, navigation did. The day’s “Top Moment” video explains better than words can, as you watch the top names in the field wander through the first special like drunken cats:

Joan Barreda, Matthias Walkner and Michael Metge lost their way early, but it was race leader Sam Sunderland who probably made the biggest error. Yet, after giving up almost 17 minutes to Pablo Quintanilla, the Chilean rider himself became hopelessly lost. The mess continued and it was actually hard to navigate the lack of navigation. One rider after another was stopped on the course or lost. Was it mechanical? A wreck? Navigation errors? Most inexplicable was second place overall rider Quintanilla. And it didn’t make sense until near the very end of the stage when he literally lost consciousness.

Pablo had been in a fog from the heat, half delirious and struggling to find his way. He stopped at one point for what was supposed to be a mechanical problem. Then he stopped again. Then he was lost again. Eventually, an hour behind, he collapsed (fortunately) near medical personnel. Although at least one source reports that Pablo fell and suffered head trauma, this cannot be corroborated.

The race was an absolute cluster to try and figure out using just the live timing. Dakar is one of several large motorsports events that reminds you America is not the greatest country in the world. The rally is so fantastic and yet coverage here is so pathetic the only way to track it is following the live feed on Argentinian TV. If your Spanish is no good you must supplement with heavy doses of forum posts and Twitter feeds from mechanics and journalists who are in the bivouac. On the plus side, TrackingDakar.nl is a donation based website with much more accurate timing and scoring than the official website.

Now where were we? Yes, the top rally riders of the world were lost in the desert and losing consciousness from the 120+ temperatures. I could probably tell you a Nazi U-boat surfaced from beneath the sands and began machine-gunning the top riders, since that is about the only thing we haven’t had this year. I reckon we can stick to the script though, and just say that the fewest mistakes (and therefore the stage win) go to Joan Barreda. The Honda rider would actually be the overall leader if not for the one hour penalty he and teammates received for refueling in a neutralization zone early in the rally.

Speaking of one hour penalties, Frenchman Michael Metge picked up one by allegedly missing a waypoint, pushing him from 2nd to 24th on the stage. As a factory Honda rider himself, he also has a penalty already for illegal refueling, but somehow ends the day in 17th overall. Still, he should be in 8th and there are only two stages left. That’s sour grapes for anyone to swallow.

As the order stands now Sam Sunderland dodged a bullet by making mistakes no worse than his rivals. He also lost his nearest competitor when Pablo Quintanilla dropped out. That leaves Mattias Walkner in 2nd and 30 minutes adrift, meaning Sunderland actually increased his lead. Gerard Farres jumps onto the podium from fifth place.

Malle Moto

The cast iron lunatics of the bike class had some action in their class within a class as well. Toomas Triisa remains miles ahead of the other MM guys, more than doubling his lead from 50 minutes to over two hours. If they piss test this guy they are going to find 10w30. He is a cyborg. Obviously some of it had to do with flawless navigation but this no doubt had much to do with conditioning. I don’t know how hot it gets in Estonia but I doubt it breaks 50C too often. Lyndon Poskitt lost even more time on Stage 10, slipping further away from Jose Julian Kozac in 2nd place. While only about 20 minutes separate the two, Stage 11 will be the last chance for these competitors to sort out the podium. Stage 01 and Stage 12 are classically nothing more than a parade; less than 100 miles total and with a special stage even shorter. It is a chance to ride wheelies and let the helicopters get proper footage for the factory teams.

The Malle Moto riders are obviously pushing against their limit. Lyndon Poskitt is filming a documentary as part of his three-years-and-going series Races To Places and his daily updates show a tired man, holding fast. But they are in the home stretch. Defeat will try and snatch victory from their jaws, but if they can just keep doing the same thing they have been doing… for two more days… Dakar will be done.

One final internet treasure to share before I sign off: BARTH Racing has a 360° camera and is not afraid to use it. They toured one of the stage bivouacs and give a look around the facilities. At the 1:01 mark the drop in to see “the biggest punkers of Dakar..” the Malle Moto pits. Using the 360 feature and high resolution you can see the tents and the Malle Moto truck that carries the racers boxes. Each day when the riders come in they have to find this truck and wait for their box to be offloaded in order to get at their supplies and tent. They also need the next days road book, SD cards, a power washer for the bike, perhaps medical attention… some food would be nice, right?

]]>Dakar Drama: The Stage 09 Landslidehttp://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-drama-the-stage-09-landslide/
Fri, 13 Jan 2017 19:17:17 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52944Judging by the comments section on Dakar Rally’s official Facebook page, people did not understand the reasoning behind cancelling Stage 09 due to a landslide. Some lamented the Rally losing its defining spirit of grit and tenacity. Others railed against organizers for their inconsiderate attitude towards local fans who drove long distances to see race […]

]]>Judging by the comments section on Dakar Rally’s official Facebook page, people did not understand the reasoning behind cancelling Stage 09 due to a landslide. Some lamented the Rally losing its defining spirit of grit and tenacity. Others railed against organizers for their inconsiderate attitude towards local fans who drove long distances to see race machines in action and would be denied the chance. Of course, such judgements are easy to make when you lack any information but a one paragraph press release.

Dakar released some footage of the devastating rains that blocked passage through the stage and caused much damage, including loss of life. Rally organizers not only had flooding on the stage, but roads that would be used to move the rally’s bivouac would be full of emergency response, not to mention the sudden need for police, medical, and military aid to local communities… aid that would otherwise be used to support the rally and its many spectators.

The footage was quite dramatic, but the rally was able to use Stage 09’s cancellation to move the event and begin Stage 10 on time. It has solidified into Peugeot’s race for the cars, with Stephane Peterhansel taking the lead from Sebastian Loeb. Peterhansel collided with motorcyclist Simon Maric (#84) about 50 miles into the stage, losing time as he naturally stopped and rendered aid to the stricken Slovenian rider. The time was eventually restored and no penalty was issued, giving a 5m50s overall lead to the 12 time Dakar winner. Some are crying foul over the incident and believe a penalty should be issued, though I have seen no footage of it and would not hazard a guess. Overtaking is an extremely difficult task and, even when we see onboard footage, it can be deceiving due to lens distortion and the extra detail a driver can see out the windshield.

On another note, a Peugeot podium sweep is possible (likely) by way of Cyril Despres. With over 25 minutes separating him from the leader, the five time Dakar winner in the bike category may have to wait another year for a win on four wheels. However, with a 7th place in 2016 being his best finish in the cars category, a podium would still be Despres’ strongest showing. Outside the top three, Nani Roma lost nearly 40 minutes to the leader today and is effectively out of the running. His Toyota Hilux was the biggest threat to Peugeot’s dominance so far. Mikko Hirvonen had a disaster on the stage, stopping to fix a problem with his Mini and losing buckets of time to the lead group. The fix was obviously not enough, as he lost more time on subsequent waypoints and now sits over an hour adrift from the lead, though still in 5th overall. Check out the official Stage 10 recap here.

Suffice to say that when the world collapses around people’s ears, racing needs to take a back seat. That doesn’t detract from the rough-and-tumble spirit of Dakar. More so, continuing to race while your hosts are plucking water-logged people out of their homes detracts from the spirit of humanity that seems to be fading every time we decide to pick up an Xbox controller instead of reaching out to our friends in the real world. People like to quote Steve McQueen as saying “Racing is life… everything before or after is just waiting.” While it is true he said it, McQueen said it in a movie, while playing a character. It’s just a line. And as we saw, Stage 10 carried on just the same, with some amazing racing. Two titans of motorsport, separated by a few minutes after nearly two weeks of flat out, off road racing. What a show.

]]>Dakar 2017: Malle Moto Stage 09 Updatehttp://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-2017-malle-moto-stage-09-update/
Thu, 12 Jan 2017 18:28:14 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52939Lyndon Poskitt took advantage of a cancelled Stage 09 to call into his sponsors at Adventure Spec, giving an update from the trenches of this year’s Dakar Rally. Lyndon currently sits second in the Malle Moto class; a class of riders who race without support crews and perform all service themselves while sleeping in tents. […]

]]>Lyndon Poskitt took advantage of a cancelled Stage 09 to call into his sponsors at Adventure Spec, giving an update from the trenches of this year’s Dakar Rally. Lyndon currently sits second in the Malle Moto class; a class of riders who race without support crews and perform all service themselves while sleeping in tents.

All of the riders are fatigued at this point, but the Malle Moto riders are beyond exhausted. Yesterday was 1150km of riding in cold weather before a mudslide blocked the way (the reason Stage 09 was cancelled). After nearly two weeks of pushing beyond the limit and being rewarded with a few paltry hours of sleep in a tent, Malle Moto competitors are living an offroad rally version of the movie Train Spotting: a massive hallucination that may actually be real.

Adventure Spec shared a transcript of Lyndon’s brief phone call in their e-magazine Tracks, where he discusses the loss of his Sentinel speaker. This is the system that warns competitors of dangers such as other competitors approaching from behind or speed control zones. If you have watched onboard footage of Dakar over the years, you have likely heard a series of annoying beeps as riders are slowing down or stopping. That is the Sentinel in action. Riding without that aid is no small task, since racers already have a lot of hazards to manage. Be sure to check out the brief interview for the full run down.

Stage 10 will feature 751km total, with much of it at high altitude. Navigation is expected to be challenging and the changing terrain should mean a lot of rough terrain early in the stage, giving way to more rolling terrain close to the end. Toomas Triisa remains the Malle Moto leader (35th overall) by over 50 minutes over Lyndon Poskitt (44th), who in turn holds a 15 minute lead over Argentina’s Jose Kozac (45th). Sam Sunderland on the Factory KTM remains the overall bikes leader with a 20 minute margin. It has been proving a rare site for a rider to win more than one stage this year, so predicting the outcome of the bikes category is going to be difficult. This year’s rally has been a wild one.

Be sure to read Lyndon Poskitt’s update in the latest Tracks article here.

]]>Dakar Heroes 2017: Stage 06http://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-heroes-2017-stage-06/
Tue, 10 Jan 2017 19:15:55 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52934The latest Dakar Heroes installment is a testament to the toughness and unforgiving nature of the famous rally. For those just tuning in, these videos tend to run a day behind for editing purposes, plus Stage 06 was cancelled due to a powerful weather system that moved in and flooded the area. But even the […]

While Lyndon Poskitt’s opening video is usually the immediate highlight of every Dakar Heroes video, this time it is #132 Joey Evans that steals the scene. Paralyzed in a 2007 crash, the South African has fought so much to simply regain the use of his legs, let alone compete in the toughest race in the world. While he sits 102nd overall in the bike category, he ranks at the top of the order for Dakar courage. His segment begins at 3:40 and sums up the spirit of Dakar in an almost accidental way. It starts out mundane, with Joey talking to us from the medical truck about a knee injury and the usual pain meds and bracing. Then it cuts to the obligatory “standing around in bad weather” as Evans chats with fellow South African David Thomas (#76).

Rather suddenly, we then find ourselves on the race course with Evans and medical staff. Of all the desert he could have been racing through, Joey Evans came across the accident scene of his friend David Thomas. How quickly a day can change our lives.

Dakar remains a must-see event each year because of the way it encapsulates life inside its two week schedule. The boredom, the challenge, the absurdity, the triumph, and the blink-of-an-eye changes that guide our lives while we tell ourselves there is fate in random chance. We continue to ascribe meaning to things that make little sense, because we need to make sense of things. Or, perhaps there is sense in the randomness and we simply can’t grasp it? The mind can argue in circles for a lifetime.

Jump in head-first my fellow Speeders and witness the inner layers of the world that is Dakar:

]]>Dakar: Carlos Sainz Crash & Peugeot Dominancehttp://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-carlos-sainz-crash-peugeot-dominance/
Fri, 06 Jan 2017 22:37:33 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52910The ‘ol tuck n’ roll can be useful in things like skateboarding or judo, but in motorsports it usually means a yard sale of expensive parts. Carlos Sainz knows that better than any of us, but just the same he crashed out of the 2017 Dakar Rally in spectacular fashion. Fan footage appears to show […]

]]>The ‘ol tuck n’ roll can be useful in things like skateboarding or judo, but in motorsports it usually means a yard sale of expensive parts. Carlos Sainz knows that better than any of us, but just the same he crashed out of the 2017 Dakar Rally in spectacular fashion. Fan footage appears to show his Peugeot 3008 hitting a rut or rock on the inside of a turn. Given the amount of suspension travel and Sainz’ reflexes, it must have been bigger than any video makes it out to be. It may have been a bit too much rotation of the car, drawing it a bit to close to the inside of the turn. The car is already fully sideways when it enters the frame.

In any event, all motorsport that us public roads or natural terrain will have the “small mistake, big consequence” equation… an equation that never seems to add up. I believe this is true because we use the equation only while tumbling end-over-end at high speed, seeing visions of our childhood flash before our eyes. Math aside, the below video clearly shows what happens when you miss by a foot while playing a game of inches. Neither crew member was injured.

The original report came as something like “Sainz crashed, overturned in ditch” or similar. What actually happened was he and co-driver Lucas Cruz cartwheeled down a ravine, as you no doubt noticed. Amazingly, the team managed to have four inflated wheels that pointed in the same direction by the time help arrived. They actually received a tow and finished the stage two hours adrift (any landing you can walk away from…). Alas, the damage was too great for crews to repair overnight and Stage 05 is already complete… without Carlos and Lucas.

On the plus side, two spectators are still with us after being pummeled by debris and having the Peugeot nearly take them down the ravine with it. When you plan where to spectate from, leave the bravado behind folks. Bravado is a fancy word for “I don’t want to think about it.” Standing on the outside of a corner is perfectly acceptable 99 times of 100. You just don’t get to pick which of the 100 times you are standing there.

Their reward for nearly being wiped out? This crappy cellphone video, shot in portrait mode of course. I would not expect someone who stands on the outside of a turn to shoot in landscape. In fairness, they knew they were in trouble the second Sainz came into view, so at least they were not sitting in chairs, clinking cerveza.

Not The First Time

As ugly as the carnage looked, Sainz has experience tearing the ends off of Peugeots. In 2016 he managed to do it on flatter ground and continue (check that one out at the bottom), but this is the fifth withdrawal for the Spaniard. It is definitely hard to watch, as Sainz is a huge name in a team full of huge names. Competition within the team must be very strong. As a race fan I am personally stuck with feeling bad for his wreck while also being pleased that part of the Peugeot juggernaut is removed. They have been turning themselves into an impenetrable wall the last two years. While Toyota is upping their game immensely (look at the Hilux from four years ago and tell me the current one is not a hardcore racing machine), Mini seems hamstrung.

You can bury your nose in the rulebook, but suffice to say that Mini and Toyota both run four-wheel-drive, and have a heavier minimum weight. Two-wheel-drives are allowed to be much lighter. This year Dakar allowed a larger intake diameter (+2mm) for the 4WD and restricted the Peugeot by 1mm. While that helps in a straight line, power and weight exist in many circumstances. For instance, at 10,000ft elevation, that “extra power” is not the same 50-60HP advantage you had at sea level. The extra weight a 4WD must carry (by the rules, not just by design) still weighs the same at any altitude. If you are following the rally, you are seeing the result (Peugeot to the front, all others step aside). Light makes right when you are pounding through riverbeds and skating sideways along sand dunes.

Mini has made a long-term commitment to Rally Raid. Will they find their way back to the front? Mikko Hrivonen (above) was lost on Stage 05 and is now over 40min adrift.

Mini is in it for the long run, as is Toyota and Peugeot, but with tweaks to the rules every year, there is a strong chance Peugeot could claw back performance by way of the pen in 2018. Five days into a two week rally there are only four cars with any chance of a win. Three are Peugeot. Crashes have taken out some. Navigation errors others. It’s not all about the cars, maaaan. But there is the essence of Dakar. Every year is different. Preparation means so much, and individual decisions have so much weight as well. If you haven’t studied the rules, you have lost before you create your first CAD model. If you fail to prepare your road book meticulously, you are lost. If you second guess your turn-in or misjudge just a little… all is lost. At least until next year.

]]>Dakar 2017: Stage 04 Bombshellshttp://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-2017-stage-04-bombshells/
Fri, 06 Jan 2017 17:07:05 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52902“Game over” is a continuing theme and we are not even half way through the 2017 Dakar. Up front for the bikes, Toby Price fell just a few kilometers from the finish and broke his left femur. While navigation errors yesterday made a two-in-a-row Dakar win look difficult, Price is now totally out of the […]

]]>“Game over” is a continuing theme and we are not even half way through the 2017 Dakar. Up front for the bikes, Toby Price fell just a few kilometers from the finish and broke his left femur. While navigation errors yesterday made a two-in-a-row Dakar win look difficult, Price is now totally out of the running.

Also in a “game over limbo” is the one-hour penalty handed to three of the four Honda factory riders, including current leader Joan Barreda. He, along with Michael Metge and Paulo Goncalves, apparently refueled in a prohibited location. Honda’s 4th rider, Ricky Brabec, is also under investigation. Appeals are underway, but organizers say the data is “clear cut.” Barreda had extended his lead today yet finds himself in 13th overall due to the penalty. Zing. Pablo Quintanilla inherits the lead. Stage 04 winner Mattias Walkner is only 2:08 behind.

Toby Price ended his Dakar just a few kilometers short of a Stage 04 win.

The cars had a bit of the same. Carlos Sainz had a “game over” by way of spectacularly rolling down a hillside and spending two hours recovering. He did manage to get the Peugeot 3008 back to service so he may be able to continue, but no one makes up two hours. He can still support his team mates and battle for stage wins if his crew can put things right on the machine. On a less fatal note, race leader Sebastien Loeb lost a huge amount of time due to a navigation error early in the stage. His lead going into the stage eased the damage, but he still ends the day in 4th. That only leaves Loeb about 6 min adrift. Things are close. Lastly, Cyril Despres was able to take his first stage win in a car. The multi-time bike winner also sits as the overall leader by about 4 minutes. A bad day for some has to mean a good day for others, no?

Nani Roma is currently the only Toyota with much change of a podium finish. The top 5 are still close to each other. Source: Dakar.

Malle Moto

And that brings me to the good stuff. The iron-men of the sport are very hard to track. Dakar themselves have riders incorrectly listed and of course the helicopters tend to follow the front runners. However, back in the middle of the field, the one-man armies showed us who was strong in the dunes. Stage 04 brought riders out of the mountains and into fesh fesh, (think of talcum powder), then dunes, and then firm-ish desert. This terrain tightened the field by allowing some to play catch up.

According to the numbers, it was mainly due to Toomas Triisa of Estonia losing a huge amount of time in the first section, though he did not continue the trend through the rest of the stage. Triisa essentially gave up his large lead for unknown reasons (navigation most likely judging by other rider’s mistakes). From there riders posted close times, clawing a few minutes back each waypoint.

Perhaps the last clean shot we will see of Lyndon Poskitt and “Rex,” his KTM race bike for the 2017 Dakar. An off at the end of Stage 04 surely added battle scars

Despite crashing just short of the finish (in front of live television no less), Lyndon Poskitt grabbed the stage win for Malle Moto and jumped two spots up to 3rd. He is still about 17 min shy of the new Malle Moto leader, Jose Kozac of Argentina. Kozac sits an impressive 33rd overall in the bike class. The numbers do not give much away; Kozac ran a similar time to Poskitt and gave up very little time at each waypoint. But with 11 waypoints, the minute here and there translated to a stage win for Poskitt, and the overall lead for Kozac. Triisa, with his massive lead from the day previous, ended an overall 2nd, with a 5 minute deficit to Kozac. The field is quite bunched up now.

Showtime.

As usual, Lyndon made the #DakarHeroes video reel (below). Stage 03 footage shows you how much the terrain changed for them. The weather changed a lot too, so be ready for some proper Yorkshire language. Get full standings, photos, and live news at Dakar’s website. Their Twitter feed also provides live updates during stages as well.

]]>Dakar 2017http://mylifeatspeed.com/dakar-2017/
Wed, 04 Jan 2017 17:43:44 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52893Dakar Stage 2 2017 Stage 02, 2017 will probably be my favorite of all time in Dakar history. Not because of the main story, but because of the story behind the story. In fact, the main story was right on script. The cars gave us what we expect, with Sebastian Loeb and Peugeot gaining ground, […]

Stage 02, 2017 will probably be my favorite of all time in Dakar history. Not because of the main story, but because of the story behind the story. In fact, the main story was right on script. The cars gave us what we expect, with Sebastian Loeb and Peugeot gaining ground, clawing a small overall lead (38 seconds) away from Nasser Al-Attiyah in the Toyota Hilux. The bikes gave us Australian Toby Price, pushing harder still on the KTM and making it look almost easy. Paulo Goncalves is a few minutes back on the Honda though, ready to show us he can ride the hell out of the worst terrain (which we haven’t seen yet).

New map book rules no longer list hazards, leaving brave riders with an advantage. Toby Price leads from the front, but already has “the stare” after high-speed Stage 02. Photo: Dakar.com

But you shouldn’t be reading this if you want that story. There are dozens of outlets, with paid journalists using satellites and helicopters and magical voodoo to give you second-by-second coverage. They tell the story of the people who can really race. If you are reading this, you care about the stories of people who can’t not race. The people so driven they don’t know what else to do but race.

There are plenty of those stories in Dakar, but for the last three years, there has been one story in particular I have followed, because it has been even bigger than Dakar. Lyndon Poskitt has been living and breathing his dream, Races To Places. Lyndon gave up his job, sold his home and possessions, and built Basil, his KTM race bike. Not meant for long distance riding with modification Lyndon and Basil have been riding every continent on earth, entering rally raids from Mongolia to America, Africa to Australia. Someone needs to have a rally on Antarctica just so Lyndon can finally come home! It doesn’t seem like anything else will stop him.

This is not Lyndon’s first Dakar, and with some help from Motorex, Adventure-Spec, KTM, and crowd funding from the fans he has picked up with his Youtube channel (hosted on the Adventure-Spec Youtube channel), Lydon has hit Dakar Legend status.

Lyndon Poskitt meets the nicest people on the road. Photo: Screen grab from official Dakar Stage 02 Recap found on youtube.

Along with copious social media appearances (the light green color of his Motorex sponsor stands out), he has already popped up in several videos hoisting huge wheelies and playing to the large crowds. But he managed two even bigger feats during Stage 02.

First, Lyndon got his own “moment of the day” on the official daily recap video (starting at 3m25sec). It seems they may end each days recap with more personal video clips, using hashtag #dakarheroes. This massively obviously increases anyone’s cache who might be featured, as it did for Tom Coronell and twin brother Tim.

They raced buggies several times (including this year), but they are one-man vehicles and use a motorcycle engine. The craziness of going solo in such a small machine created a cult of fame around both brothers but especially Tom (not that they weren’t already well known racing drivers to begin with mind you, though on pavement).

But knowing that it takes more than 15 minutes of fame to make you a Dakar celebrity, Lyndon found himself a good old fashioned scandal. “Feet-gate” you could call it, since everything needs to be buzz-worthy and tragically hip on the internet. Let me just give you the straight dope.

Video surfaced on the Dakar Rally’s social media accounts of Lyndon riding with his feet up on the handlebars. This was on an un-timed section of the course (as in, not while racing), at low speed, but the Twitter-verse is full of, well, twits. Commenters called it hooliganism and called for his disqualification.

Avert your eyes from the horror! Photo: Screen grab from ADVRider.com

Personally I call them wet blankets and call for their disqualification from commenting on motorsports. See how fun the internet is? The important thing is, Lyndon is in 39th position at the end of Stage 02, and 2nd in the Malle Moto class, where riders are unassisted by support crew and must perform all maintenance and repair on their machines (except tire changes at the bivouac). If the Dakar officials are as fun loving as their media arm, Lyndon will not incur a penalty and he can keep battling for a win. His 2013 finish at Dakar was 46th overall, so there is also that finish to try and better.

Mugging for the camera. Photo: Screen grab from Dakar official press video.

Expect to see him and the other Malle Moto riders slowly fall down the order. The question will be, how far? It is inevitable that, as they continue to work on their bikes and sleep only two or three hours per night, fatigue will slow them on the race course. They may only race, say, 100 miles in a day, but they can easily traverse 500miles total, going from sand dunes to freezing mountain passes. Riders do their own navigating, searching for checkpoints to get a time stamp, then finding a specific piece of ground with their container of tools and spares. One container in a tent city that was set up while they were on the road. Then, unpack, set up the tent, pull out the tools, and get ready for the next day. Maybe some food would be nice?

Tracking The Action

So, as per the usual, the official Dakar website is difficult to use but is still there, and the app also exists. If you want to follow the front teams things are easier. If you want to follow anyone else, you need to understand how live timing works, where the checkpoints are, and what you are looking at. For anything better, international coverage is a better bet (see 2 paragraphs below).

Coverage is abysmal in the US and that is just a fact of life. We watch people race in circles because it is easy to understand. Write your Congressman; I have no control. Malle Moto tracking is best done at Tracking Dakar, since the official website tracks all the bikes as one category. There are only 11 of more than 130 motorcycle entries attempting the rally unassisted. You will only get a time sheet, but it is more than anyone else gives you. Be thankful for awesome people, providing free services.

The ADVRider.com forum also has a thread with copious information about the event. Post #4 has links to TV coverage on different continents, if you are good with understanding time zones and foreign languages. It really gives you perspective just how crazy this event is when simply trying to follow it from home is this daunting. When you are done, it feels as though you should get some kind of participation trophy or an “I survived” T-shirt.

Imagine actually being there. Better get your passport out for next year: Paraguay is quite warm this time of year I am told.

There are places to cool off from the heat in Paraguay. Photo: Dakar.com

]]>GRC Seattle 2016 – Friday Photoshttp://mylifeatspeed.com/grc-seattle-2016-friday-photos/
Sat, 17 Sep 2016 08:59:23 +0000http://mylifeatspeed.com/?p=52725Friday at the Seattle round of the Red Bull Global Rallycross series was filled with action, and we expected no less! Great driving, and even a massive explosion under the hood of Nelson Piquet Jr.! Here are some of my favorite photos from Friday action:

]]>Friday at the Seattle round of the Red Bull Global Rallycross series was filled with action, and we expected no less! Great driving, and even a massive explosion under the hood of Nelson Piquet Jr.!

Here are some of my favorite photos from Friday action:

Nelson Piquet Jr.David HigginsA little crossed up.Brian Deegan coming in a little hard.FocusPlaying in the dirt is fun!Young driver gets a smile from his girlfriend before the heat race…The Lites drivers seem to be getting younger and younger…Austin Dyne gets staged for qualifying.Getting rowdy entering the dirt.Austin DyneKicking up a little dirt.Nelson Piquet Jr gets focused on qualifying.Feeling a little tippy.Much dirt was flying.Tanner Foust through the dirt hairpin.Through the short chute after the jump.Lites car in the short chute.Tanner Foust over the jump.Can you spot the problem on Joni Wymans car?Heat 1 underway!Moments after the explosion, Nelson Piquet Jr turns the car off track.Fuel lines still spewing flammable liquid.Piquet exits safely.Steve Arpin takes the heat win.